Crossword Genius

Eternal punishment in Mother land? (9)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

damnation

'eternal punishment' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)

'mother land?' is the wordplay.
'mother' becomes 'dam' (female parent of an animal).
'land?' becomes 'nation' ('nation' can be a synonym of 'land'**).
'dam'+'nation'='DAMNATION'

'in' acts as a link.

(Other definitions for damnation that I've seen before include "27 [HELL]" , "Infernal punishment" , "angry exclamation?" , "Mild oath" , "Curse" .)

I've seen this clue in The Times.
Want a hint initially instead of a full solution? Install my app